Hard Rain
by droidgirl
Summary: Jeff thinks about how much his life sucks right now, and how Vaughn is totally to blame, obviously.


**Hard Rain**

**Disclaimer: NBC owns all characters mentioned. No profit has been made with this short story.**

*******

There was no escaping Vaughn. Everywhere Jeff turned, there he was, shirtless and shoeless. Lunch time, and he'd be strumming his guitar at their table. Spanish class, and he'd be playing absolute Frisbee right outside their classroom windows. Break time and he'd be whispering in Annie's ear, hands and body all over her. It was distracting.

Everything added up to the fact that Vaughn had unwittingly become the cherry atop Jeff's sundae of despair. Because obviously, life just wasn't bad enough, and God apparently _hates_ former lawyers who lied their way to the top.

How much was his life sucking? Let him count the ways:

There was Greendale Community College – that was what his life had apparently amounted to at age thirty-two. After a stellar stint in the legal industry, he was in a backwater college that not a single person outside a three-mile radius had even heard of, trying to earn a freaking _bachelor's_ degree. In fact, it was the only place that would take him. If that didn't rouse suicidal urges, he didn't know what could.

Moving on to the part where he lost his condo. Yeah, that phase was a real winner.

Of course, now he was also about to lose his car. An average college student couldn't afford a Lexus, and Jeff was coming to the unenviable conclusion about how below-average he was truly becoming. His car payments were sucking the life out of him, while boxes of Kraft Dinner were beginning to seem more and more like luxury items. Average college students led awesome lives in comparison, it seemed.

He had spent his entire adult life thinking what a very clever person he was. He had sidestepped the system and climbed high, to places even many Harvard graduates could not reach. Not that he wasn't Ivy League material; he had an acceptance letter to prove he was. He'd just had enough of education for one lifetime by the date of his high school graduation – _was that so wrong?_ He thought petulantly. (_Plenty_, a calm voice whispered to him, and helpfully pointed out. _You can't get something for nothing_.)

On his twenty-fifth birthday, he had held a pay slip in his hand that read a six-figure sum, and Jeff's not gonna lie, but he patted himself on the back. Figuratively and literally. Somehow, he had spent all that money in a few short years…without much to show for it besides an aging car and a few branded shirts.

Now he was giving it all back. Correction. Everything was being ripped away from him, piece by painful piece. Starting with his job, and ending with his dignity.

No, life wasn't fair, he decided. So he cheated, but he had won at it. Didn't that deserve some kind of reward? (The answer in his own head was always an emphatic _No_. This thing about having a conscience took getting used to).

Certainly, watching his debate partner and the Hippie canoodling everywhere he turned was perhaps a step too far. Surely he didn't deserve that kind of torture.

***

It was one of those Mondays when depressing thoughts were swirling furiously in his head, and he had to put up with yet another love poem by Vaughn over a dismal lunch of what only resembled a burger.

"That's so sweet!" Annie said, her head tilted upwards, her eyes dreamy.

"Not as sweet as you babe," her boyfriend replied, kissing her on the nose. Beside Jeff, Britta made a gagging noise. Everyone else had found an excuse to leave around the fourth stanza. Jeff found himself admiring Britta's ability to stay put, but figured it was only because she couldn't think of a polite enough way to fuck off. Hell, if he wasn't so hungry and if he hadn't had half a plate of fries left, he would have ducked for cover with the rest of the group.

"I gotta go," Britta cut in, sensing that the end of the poem was a good place to escape. "I have to grab some…pencils, from the bookstore."

"I'll walk with you, I need to go to the ladies room," Annie jumped up. She smiled down at Vaughn. "Be right back,"

The awkward silence the women left behind was hard to ignore, but Jeff soldiered on, chewing his food resolutely, while the other man pulled out a pad of paper and a pen from his hemp satchel and begin scribbling furiously. After a while though, the former lawyer couldn't help but notice that all movements had ceased from his shirtless companion.

Jeff looked across the table to see Vaughn's gaze fixating somewhere over his shoulder. Curious, he turned around and caught sight of the woman that had so caught the hippie's attention.

Being straight and male, Jeff smiled appreciatively to himself as he took in the abundance of curves and swells a few feet away. That is, until he caught sight of Annie standing off to the side, silently observing Vaughn's reaction to the pretty girl and the decidedly hungry way he was eyeing her. Her pale cheeks were unusually flushed. Carefully, Jeff averted his eyes before the young woman would realize that he had witnessed her reaction.

_Nothing worse than getting caught staring, one way or another_, Jeff thought, attempting to devote his attention back to his soggy burger. As he expected, Annie sat back down beside Vaughn a few seconds later. Also as expected, she said nothing, merely chattering away at an almost hysterical pace. She never did know how to hide what's in her heart, Jeff thought.

"Aww babe, it looks like I gotta head." he interrupted her, looking at the wall clock. "I'll see you tomorrow ok?"

Annie accepted a quick kiss and a quick ruffle of her hair. She waited one whole minute watching as her boyfriend walked out the doors of the cafeteria, not so subtly following the other girl out before quietly asking,

"I suppose you still find this whole thing with me and him stupid,"

"No. I mean, you're not stupid. Vaughn however…" Jeff replied.

"You can tell me. I'm a big girl," she continued.

"Annie…"

"Everyone left almost as soon as he sat down. Britta looked like she couldn't keep her food in," she pressed on, ignoring the single, most obvious reason why she had suddenly become so anxious. "I thought after so long, everyone would have accepted it. Or am I over-thinking this? Jeff, tell me I'm reading too much into things, please?"

"Annie, I…" he shook his head. Having lost his appetite completely now, he put his burger down and started to gather his things. "I have to go,"

"Je-eff!" She whined, desperately seeking assurance for the question she had not actually voiced out loud, but was written all over her face.

"Why are you so anxious for people to tell you that you're making a mistake?" he snapped impatiently, and instantly knew he had said the wrong thing as her dark eyes widened slowly, flooded in hurt. Running his fingers through his hair, he sighed in frustration. As if he didn't have enough on his plate to deal with.

"Look, I just think…if you really want my opinion, I think you're so in love with the idea of being in love that you grabbed the first guy who came along with his stupid guitar and his "complicated" affections." He breathed in and continued, "What you _deserve_ is someone who thinks about you constantly even when you're not around, and tells you how beautiful you are as often as humanly possible. Who is addicted to hearing your voice, and never wants to stop listening to you when you speak. Who feels like his day doesn't start until he says hi to you, and most importantly, _doesn't start drooling over every piece of ass that walks past every time you turn the other way_."

He was saying too much, and he knew it. Her lips were frozen in an 'O' of surprise.

"Jesus Christ Annie, God knows you deserve all that," he stood up and turned away. "But you and I both know that the best you're going to get out of Vaughn is a bad rhyming scheme every other day, and possibly hookworm. You really need to get him wearing shoes."

"Wait…" Annie called out to his back. He paused, waiting to hear what she had to say.

"I'll see you later," he muttered at last and stalked off, leaving the young woman behind, watching him thoughtfully.

***

They were talking outside his Social Psychology classroom, her leaning against the wall, him leaning over her, strategically positioning himself in a way that best highlighted his pecs.

Jeff didn't break his stride as he hauled Vaughn into the empty classroom, ignoring the other man's angry protestations.

"Dude, what the fuck bro?" Vaughn demanded, finally breaking out of Jeff's grip.

"I'm not your bro," Jeff replied. "And what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"None of your business is what,"

"No, you're fucking around behind Annie's back. That _makes_ it my business," Jeff informed him in a voice as cold as steel.

Vaughn shifted from side to side, looking guilty.

"I dig Annie, I really do, but she's kinda uptight you know what I mean?" he asked at last.

The classroom began to fill with students. Vaughn straightened himself up and looked Jeff in the eye.

"Look man, whatever your issues are, you stay the hell away from me. And her." His face twisted into a sneer. "I've seen the way you look at her. You're not fooling anyone with your big brother act."

His classmates were giving him curious looks as Vaughn strode off.

"Some people really need to understand the concept of anti-perspirant. Am I right?" Jeff lifted his hand sardonically as if for a high five. None was forthcoming. Putting his hand down, he sighed yet again, and murmured, "Killjoys."

***

He was always careful to keep out of sight when he followed her to the parking lot at night after each study group. Granted, it seemed creepy, an almost middle-aged guy following an eighteen-year-old girl in the dark, but he was only trying to make sure she got into her car safely, without anyone else making a big deal about what a big softie Jeff really was of it. He did after all, have a reputation of aloofness to maintain. Why he hadn't ever done it for Britta, also an attractive young woman with a car in a parking lot somewhere else, was a question he really didn't want to examine.

She hadn't ever figured out his lurking presence, and no one had ever caught him on it. Which was why he was surprised when she reached her car and called out over her shoulder,

"You can come out now Jeff,"

Startled, he paused mid-step and hoped he had misheard.

"I know you're there," she said, turning around with a weary smile. "Did I leave something in the library?"

Oh, good, it was just this one time.

"I…I just wanted to get to my car. What you think you're the only one that drives?" he scoffed, stepping into the light of the street lamp.

"Your car's parked on the other side of the campus," she pointed out.

"How do you know that?" he demanded. She had the grace to blush.

"Jeff Winger, are you trying to do the gallant thing and protect me from the things that go bump in the parking lot?" she asked, ignoring his question.

"I thought you were Shirley and I was dying for a brownie and a pep talk," he quipped. "Also if you tell anyone at all about my 'gallantry'" he made air quotes. "I will tell Britta that nasty name you called her the other day."

"You wouldn't dare," she gasped, then frowned in consternation as she considered his threat. "What _did_ I call her?"

"I haven't thought of it yet," Jeff said. "But I will,"

She seemed to hesitate for a moment, and then abruptly, she blurted out,

"I broke up with Vaughn,"

"Oh." He took a moment to process what she said, and then tried to ignore the flood of relief those words brought. If he were polite, he would have asked how the other guy had taken it, but he really didn't give a damn. So he asked instead, "Are you ok?"

"Yeah. I'm…fine. Surprisingly," she assured him hurriedly.

"Right. That's…good." He looked down at his phone as if checking the time. "Look I should just go. You got to your car safely and didn't get raped or mugged along the way, so my work here is done,"

"Oh my God, you think you're the friendly neighbourhood Spiderman," she giggled.

"He is after all the coolest superhero," he said, cracking a grin. "Even Superman can't scale bare walls,"

"Superman just jumps over tall buildings, or flies to the floor he wants," she pointed out logically.

"Pfft. You don't know what you speak of," he waved her off, momentarily forgetting what they were actually talking about. "Besides, DC heroes are way overrated."

"Fine, but Iron Man could blast Spiderman into next Tuesday, Deadpool has better comebacks…" she set her books down on the hood of her car and started counting on her fingertips. "Professor Xavier could kill him with his brain…Pretty much any of the Avengers could kick Spidey's ass come to think of it. What's he gonna do, defend himself with a web? Swing himself away like a huge girl?"

He looked at her with something close to worship, and the feeling that he was wading deep into dangerous waters just by standing there. He quashed his need to defend Spiderman.

"What? Rehab was boring. My brother brought me his comic book collection to keep me occupied…" she smiled.

Then, she did the next most surprising thing. She reached up on her tiptoes and pressed a soft kiss on his cheek. While it certainly wasn't the same as having her drag his body against hers in a passionate embrace the way she had done what seemed like ages ago…it was nice. Only, Jeff hoped he wasn't flushing like some idiot boy. That would be lame.

"I'll see you tomorrow," she told him softly.

As he watched her drive away, Jeff Winger couldn't wipe the smile from his face, or the thought that maybe, just maybe, things were finally beginning to look up.


End file.
